Racket or bat for tennis or like games



July 6, 1931' F. w D'ONISTHORPE 2,085,960

RACKET OR BAT FOR TENNIS OR LIKE GAMES I F iled Dec. 17, 1935 i 2Sheets-Sheet l Patented July 6, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT orrlcr.

RACKET R BAT FOR TENNIS 0R LIKE GAMES Application December 17, 1935,Serial No. 54,931

In Great Britain 8 Claims.

This invention relates to rackets or bats for tennis and like games.

The object of this invention is to provide a racket or the like ofimproved shape which will be more efiicient in use.

' A further object is to provide a racket or the like withreinforcements which will prevent Warp or twist and which will preventthe racket being pulled out of shape by the stringing.

A still further object is to provide means which will serve forsupporting the racket during use.

With these and other objects in View theinvention consists in carryingthe bow or head of a tennis or other racket from the handle or gripthrough the medium of side extension members and one or more additionalmembers arranged within the side extension or handle members.

The invention further consists in carrying the bow or head of a tennisor other racket from the 0 handle or grip portion through the medium ofa centrally extending member and side extension members preferablyarranged tangentially from the said bow or head and meeting at the gripor handle.

The invention still further consists in the provision of wedge shapedreinforcing members between the side members and the bow of the racketthrough which the stringing is adapted to pass.

The invention still further consists in forming the bow portion of theracket by means of strips bent to form the bow, the ends of one stripbeing brought together to provide the inner frame and a central stemextending into and forming the centre part of the handle, the ends ofthe other 5 strip being brought preferably tangentially from the bow andfurther forming the handle so as to provide direct supports from thegrip of the handle to the side of the bow, said bow being further shapedby an arcuately bent insertion at the throat portion of the racket, athroat piece being also inserted at the curved junction of the stripwhich forms the central stem.

The invention will now be described with reference to the accompanyingdrawings in which:-

Figure l is a front elevation of one form of tennis racket constructedaccording to this invention.

Figure 2 is a side elevation thereof,

Figure 3 is an enlarged detail,

Figure 4 is a cross section taken on the line aa,' of Figure l. V

Figure 5 shows a modified form of racket with the side members of adifferent shape.

Figure 6 is another form of racket in which December 31, 1934 the headis connected'to the handle or grip by four handle members.

Figure 7 shows an alternative method of constructing the racket shown inFigure 1.

Figure 8 is a further modification, and

Figure 9 is a still further modified construction.

Referring more particularly to the construction shown in Figures 1 to 4the frame is formed of two laminated strips of wood I and 2. Onelaminated strip I comprising for instance three laminations 3, 4, and 5,is bent to form the bow and the ends are brought together to form thecentral shaft 6 extending to and forming the centre of the handle 1. Atthe junction of the inwardly bent ends a throat piece 8 is inserted andan additional arcuately shaped laminated strip 9 is glued or otherwisesecured so as to pro-v vide the usual oval shape to the interior of theframe. Around the bow portion thus formed the additional laminated stripor strap 2 is secured. This additional laminated strip 2 comprising, forinstance, three laminations it, II, and I2 has its ends tangentiallyarranged to the medial portion of the bow as shown at I3 and this stripor strap 2 passes directly into the grip portion of the handle 1 andparallel extensions l4 thereof are adapted to further form part of thehandle 1. Insertion pieces 15 are provided between the central stem 8 ofthe handle 1 and the extending portions M of the tangentiallyarrangedstrips [3 so as to make they grip portion of the handle l'of the desiredwidth. The grip portion of the handle 7 l is further reinforced bypieces I6 glued on to the upper and lower edge faces of the strips 6 andM and the insertion pieces 15 so that the grip portion of the handle 1can be brought tothe desired shape and section. It will be seen that thegrip portion of the handle I is made only of sufficient length to becomfortably gripped and that the strips 5 and i3 can convenientlyformadditional grip or handle members. The grip portion of the handle?may be bound with or reinforced by leather tape or the like material I6in the usual manner. Wedge pieces H are also inserted between the curvedportions of the bow and the tangentially arranged members I! so as toreinforce the racket at these places and facilitate the stringingoperation. These portions may also be further reinforced by bindingtape'or the like it and/or an overlay and binding tape or the like I9 isalso provided at each side'of the throat so that the arcuately shapedinsertion piece 9 will be. further reinforced. i

It will thus be seen that the frame of the racket will have asubstantially triangular shaped,

gap or opening 20 at each side of the main stem 6, which latter is ofconsiderably lighter construction than usual. The bow portion of theracket will thus be carried from the handle grip I by the central stem 6and. by two outwardly flared members I3 extending directly from thehandle grip to the medial portion of the bow b which continue completelyround the inner frame member. The outwardly flared members which formpart of the outer main frame may be inwardly or outwardly bowed orotherwise suitably curved but are preferably made straight as shown sothat they directly support the medial portion of the bow from the handlegrip and thus serve to directly take the strain when a ball is hit ateither side of the bow. It will be seen that the laminated strip 2 willprovide what may be termed a strapped racket.

The bow of the racket is drilled at 2| in the usual manner for thestringing 22 and each wedge shaped piece I1 is drilled for the insertionof the string or gut which is adapted to further secure the wedge shapedpieces I1 in position. These wedge shaped pieces I! are also furtherdrilled or bored at 23 so that a portion of the stringing can be broughtfrom the outside frame into the triangular shaped gaps 20 and threadedthrough the throat or connected to the throat portion in the usualmanner. ranged aperture 23 in each wedge I1 is preferably provided forthe ends of the longitudinal stringing, the lateral stringing will bebrought out through the wedge pieces I! to the outer frame insubstantially the usual manner. Thus any difficulty of threading thisnew type of racket will be overcome. It will be seen from the abovedescription that the bow of the racket will be supported from the gripportion of the handle I by three limb members, that is, the centralmember 6 formed by the connected ends of the main or inner frame I andthe tangentially arranged ends I3 of the outer frame or strap 2. bowportion of the racket will be of similar section to that usuallyprovided and the weight will not be increased, since the central stem 6is of considerably lighter construction than the handle stem provided inthe usual type of racket.

In the modified construction as shown in Figure 5 the members I3 arecurved and bent inwardlyso that parts thereof may be secured to thecentral stem 6. Thus, parts of the members I3 extend straight upwardsfor some distance from the grip portion of the handle 1. This method ofconstruction provides a more rigid connection between the grip and thebow which is much stronger than the conventional throat. The members I 3may be united along the straight portion or may be separate until theyreach the grip. If desired, the grip portion may extend further up thehandle.

If desired, the ends of the inner laminated strip I need not be glued orsecured together. On the other hand they may be spaced apart and ifnecessary spacing members may be secured between them, thus in efiectproducing a racket in which the bow portion is connected to the gripportion by four extending handle members. A slight modification of themain construction is shown in Figure 6 in which the ends 24 of thelaminated strip I do not extend to the'centre of the lower end of thebow 25 but are bent downwards and'then converge and meet in the gripmember 26. Further wedges 21 may be secured at the joint between theportions 2 5 and the arcuately shaped strip.9. I

This additional angularly ar- Obviously, the:

In a further modified construction as shown in Figure 7, the laminatedstrip I may be divided at the bow portion. The laminated strip I willthen be in two parts 28, curved round so as to form the lower end of thebow 25. In this case the arcuately shaped member 9 is omitted.

In a further modified construction as shown in Figure 8 the central stem6 need not be formed integral with the bow. In this case the centralportion 6 comprises a member 29 separate from the bow and this member 29is secured to the bow by glue, screws or by any other suitable means.Small wedges 38 may be secured to both sides of the join. The lowerportion of the bow may be completed by an arcuately shaped member or ifdesired a complete oval frame member 3| may be inserted to reinforce thebow portion of the racket.

In a further alternative construction as shown in Figure 9 the portion 6of the laminated strip I need not extend to the grip portion of thehandle, but may be out 01f to provide a projection 3z. This projection32 will form a convenient support for the bow of the racket during useeither alone or by the player gripping it and one of the side members I3.

Although it is preferred to use laminated wood in the variousconstructions described, it is obvious that the parts may be constitutedof solid strips of wood or metal.

It will be understood that various modifications may be made withoutdeparting from the scope of the invention. For example, the straps I3need not be formed integrally with the bow, but might comprise separatemembers within which a complete bow of oval or any other desired shapemay be secured. Further the grip.

portion may be connected to the bow or head by means of more than fourhandle members. The head or how may be of oval, circular or any otherdesired shape and may be strung in any convenient or known manner. notlimited in its application to tennis rackets, but could also be appliedto rackets or-bats for badminton, squash, ping-pong and similar games.

What I claim is:

1. A racket for tennis and like games comprising a bow or head member, agrip member, two handle members diverging from the grip member andadjoining the bow towards its extreme sides and a member extendingdownwardly from the lower endof the bow, said handle members and lastmentioned 'member being spaced apart so that each maybe separatelygripped by the hand. r

2. A racket for tennis and like games wherein the bow or head portion ofthe racket is formed by means of strips bent to form the how, the endsof one strip being brought together to provide the inner frame and acentral stem extending into and forming the centre part of the handle,the outer strips or strap being bent round the inner frame and broughtsubstantially tangentially from the bow to form the handle and toprovide direct supports from the grip of the handle to the side of thebow.

3. In a tennis racket, as claimed in claim 2,

g the provision of wedge shaped reinforcing mem-- The invention is sothat a portion of the string can be brought from the outside of theframe into the triangular shaped gaps formed between the central stemand the tangentially arranged side members.

5. A tennis racket as claimed in claim 2, wherein insertion pieces areprovided between the central stem and the extending portions of the sideor tangentially arranged strips so as to provide a handle of the desiredwidth.

6. A racket for tennis and like games, comprising a bow member, a gripmember, two handle members diverging from the grip member and connectedto the bow member at its extreme sides, and a further handle memberextending downwardly from the lower end of the bow, the diverging handlemembers having an uninterrupted length exceeding the distance betweenthe grip member and the nearest point of the bow.

'7. A racket for tennis and the like, comprising a bow or head, a gripmember, and three or more independent interconnecting members betweenthe bow and grip member, said interconnecting members being so spacedapart that each may be separately gripped by the hand.

8. A tennis racket including a how, a handle, a skeleton extensionbetween the handle and bow, said skeleton extension being formed by acentral stem between the bow and handle, and

side members connected to the handle and diverging relative to thecentral stem and connected at' their upper ends to the bow to formwedge-shaped spaces, said wedge-shaped spaces providing such area thatthe central stem or side members may be separately gripped by the hand.

FRANK WORDSWORTH DONISTHORPE.

